Bay Area storms: Don’t drive into flooded roads, motorists warned

With another set of storms bringing the possibility of widespread flooding around the Bay Area early this week, authorities are repeating a warning that some people think doesn’t apply to them: Don’t drive into water on flooded roads.

#TurnAroundDontDrown is the social media message being blasted by the National Weather Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the AAA Northern California. Even seemingly shallow water from an overflowing creek can be deadly, especially if the current is moving swiftly. More than half of flood-related drownings occur when someone drives into hazardous water, the NWS and CDC say.

It appears that a number of motorists haven’t been aware of these dangers since the first of the series of record-setting atmospheric rivers hit on New Year’s Eve. Images of cars, stalled and abandoned in rising waters, have been abundant in the news and on social media over the past week.

The NWS says to “NEVER” drive through flooded roadways, using capital letters to emphasize that message. That’s because a motorist can’t know the condition of the road under the water; it may be washed out.

As few as six inches of water can reach the bottom of most passenger cars and cause drivers to lose control or their vehicles to stall, putting them and their passengers at risk of drowning, the NWS said. Twelve inches of water will float many vehicles, and two feet of rushing water can carry away most vehicles, including larger and heavier SUVs and pickups.

If you end up in a flooded area, and water begins rising around your car, the NWS says you should abandon your vehicle immediately and move to higher ground. Amid rising floodwaters, you’re danger that you and your vehicle will be swept away.

There also are other dangers from going near floodwaters — a reality that seemed lost on people who were recorded climbing on rafts to ride the floodwaters that had suddenly turned their neighborhood streets into rushing rivers.

In fact, those floodwaters may be teeming with household or industrial hazardous waste, sewage and other contaminants — all of which can make people very sick, the CDC said. People also can be injured by branches, lumber, sharp glass or metal fragments and other debris swirling around in the water water. If you must enter floodwater, wear rubber boots, rubber gloves, and goggles, the CDC also said. People also should never go near power lines or drive through standing water if down lines are in the water.